Confusion: new AF-S Nikkor 50mm f/1.8G lens

Approximately 4 hours ago, a new lens appeared on Nikon Imaging website: Nikkor AF-S 50mm f/1.8G. I am still not sure if this is a mistake or this lens is really officially announced. No major website has reported this news yet and there is no official press release from Nikon. The lens is not listed on other Nikon websites.

Updates:

One of the sample images posted on Nikon's website is from Deborah Sandidge (published online on her blog on March 18th, 2011). The images were removed few minutes after publishing the links online. Blog post is still available on Google cache.

I think next will be 85/1.8 AF-S. I will buy it, because I have only AF-D ver.

Cartman

This thing is real!
7 bladed means the bokeh won’t be as nice as the 1.4/G. But it’s going to be a lot cheaper

http://www.flickr.com/genotypewriter genotypewriter

Bokeh (rings) will be smoother than the 1.4G @ f/1.8

Darryl Harris

Just when I was about to get the old version for my D7000 for $140 at B&H. I’ll wait until this, because frankly, Nikkor lens are rather ugly. I like the new style of the DX lenses MUCH better. I have the 85mm f/1.8 too and I hope they update that one as well.

NikonMikon

what the hell are you talking about? this lens isn’t even DX…. and how the lens looks doesn’t matter one iota of a shit when taking pictures. do you own a mac?

dave.

hahahaha +1

http://AdairCreativeGroup.com Ron Adair

I own a Mac. 2. Is there a problem with that?

NikonMikon

Yeah, but we won’t get into it.

Danny

Sorry bud but Macs dominate over PC

http://www.russbarnes.co RussB

The voice of someone who hasn’t run Windows 7 with an iCore7. Macs use the same basic architecture – Steve Jobs is the master of form over function, and that’s exactly what a Mac is.

Jason

Not when you want more than four HDDs they don’t. Less than $1000 cuts your mac options down, too, when you want multiple HDDs and 8Gb of RAM.
I’m a PC.
I’m a Mac. Wallet, punk! Now!!!!

NikonMikon

RussB you can never reason with them, they lack the proper cognitive skills. That’s why they use a mac in the first place.

Peter Tanevski

I run both Mac and PC with high end hardware (both i7).

The PC has faster hardware overall by far, but the mac runs faster for most photography and design work.

The PC renders a little faster but not as much as i’d expect from the hardware differences.

Both the same price… bottom line..

The Mac looks and feels nicer to me (preference though).

Sorry that you all above on the rabid PC side do not own one and are reluctant to see the pros and cons in both systems..

PAG

If you listened to the MS ads, they effectively said “Windows 7 … this one actually doesn’t suck like every other version of Windows” so the MS fanboys are happy. Just pay no attention to the ME or Vista behind the curtain.

matobi

Hmm…..Linux.

http://www.panopixel.org DrSlony

Ahaha, love at first sight

sirin

lol. good one. ))

http://kishorephoto.blogspot.com NK

The question is how much does it cost ?

http://snailartphotography.daportfolio.com/ benjamin

nice… im still sticking with manuals 50s for now so i ll give this one a miss, but nice to see another new lens!

ccwong

DPreview officially reported this

ccwong

DPreview reported on this. so is official

ccwong

aiks… i didn’t read properly… DPreview is just reporting what is found on the web site. No formal announcement yet.

Jabs

Seems like the article and images about the new 50mm F1.8 have been removed from Deborah Sadidge’s web site or it CRASHED – lol.

D40-owner

MUAHAHAHAHAHAA!!!!!
Just this weekend I was taking shots of my newborn with my D40+ 35 1.8G, and hating the close distance distortion.
This 50 1.8G is the answer to my prayers, having a mild telephoto for nice headshot close ups without screwing up the proportions of the face. YAY!

broxibear

Supplies of cameras from Japan are running out and shelves will be empty over the next few weeks according to London Drugs president and CEO Wynne Powell…
“Japanese companies typically have low inventory levels, Powell said, and demand has overtaken supply as Japan outsources production to other countries and attempts to keep factories running amid parts and electricity shortages.
They don’t have months of inventory on hand, and it’s now starting to show, he said.
All of these manufacturers are working very hard … to try to mitigate the shortage problem. But at a certain point, when the cupboard is bare, the cupboard is bare.
Nikon, which is warning of camera shortages this summer, is another case in point, Powell said. The company had a lens factory near the epicentre of the quake. The firm was able to repair the crack in the floor and get the plant operating again, but had to shut down after running out of a small part that was supplied by a local family business.”http://www.globalregina.com/world/Supply+crunch+coming+cameras+electronics+from+Japan/4608474/story.html

If this one gets better OOF looks than the 1.4 – then I’m all over it.

http://micahmedia.com/ Micah

What’s wrong with the bokeh on the 1.4? You mean the D or G version?

castlev

The 50mm 1.4 AF-S lens was designed to be sharp and accurately focused at 1.4 (which is way is a little bit slower than other lenses) not for bokeh performance. Bokeh its very distracting compared to the smoothness of the 1.8.

Of course that depends on the type of background you have and your taste for bokeh. I prefer smooth rather and harsh bokeh.

http://ml.cs.colorado.edu/~ben/gallery Ben

No, Nikon would never be so stupid as to have an f/1.4 and an f/1.8 that are otherwise identical. Oh, wait, I guess they would…

This lens just doesn’t make sense given their product lineup. The old 50mm f/1.8 works great on all their FX cameras, and nobody who buys FX ($3000 every 3 years) is going to be stupid enough to quibble about dropping $500 on a lens that’ll last 10 years. Now if this were a DX and didn’t have cost- and weight-boosting features such as a focus scale, maybe it’d make some shred of sense. But still not much, since the 35mm f/1.8 is the standard, and anything else is just occasional-use and therefore filling holes in the lineup is far more important than re-releasing this crap.

Or am I just bitter because I want a 12mm AF-S f/1.8 DX?

http://lamarfrancois.wordpress.com lamarfrancois

Agree.

Can’t see how a distance scale adds a huge amount of cost to a lens though – quite frankly it (should be) a standard part on ANY lens , the lack of this on the 35 f/1.8 is irksome.

http://micahmedia.com/ Micah

It’s a feature I rarely use. Honestly, I’d rather go without it. And the reason the 50G is pricey is the R&D that went into it and the production of the glass. And it’s worth it. Despite lacking the gold band, it is definitely in the same class as the 1.4 glass released after it. I <3 mine.

Yes, I just posted the info on NR forum, and then found the post removed.

Dweeb

Now re-engineered for digital! In any case probably the only new Chinese Nikon lense outside of Thailand we’ll see for a while.

http://lamarfrancois.wordpress.com lamarfrancois

Bit unexpected this is – I’d argue the 80-400 is in dire need of an AF-S update more than the 50 f/1.8.Nice update to bring it to the newer bodies without screwdrive motors though.

The only thing is I hope these lenses don’t have the slow cheap AF-S motor that the 35 f/1.8 (for example) has – that would be a bit disappointing ; and it’s not much more expensive than the current dirt cheap lenses.

http://nakedlens.org NakedLens

Looks like Nikon just yanked the page from their website. As a matter of fact, their lens lineup page in unreachable as well.

The cynic in me says Nikon did this on purpose to cause a bit of excitement before announcing their Sendai and Tochigi plants won’t be producing any equipment for the rest of the year.
But what do I know lol ?

Jokke

Nikons lens lineup page is not available right now… So someone is probably getting hurt at the moment

Alin

It it’s still listed on the Dpreview site… Coool news.. I wasn t expect it..

MKimber

Already removed from Nikon US website

Photonut

Awesome! But where’s the VR !?!?!?!?!?

And I hope the AF-S isn’t a such a failure as the 1.4G AF-S which is slower than the non AF-S ….

hexx

yep, my 35 f/1.8 af-s is slower than 50 f/1.8D. 50 f/1.8D is a small gem. i guess this would work for lot of ppl with DX cameras who would normally buy 35 AF-S (for cheaper DX cameras without AF motor). that’s the reason i originally bought mine 35 not 50.

The Man from Mandrem

My 35/1.8 is blazing fast on D7000. Pretty cool when people are blowing out candles, etc that I can get the shot without risk. Blows away my 50/1.8D and any other non-AFS lense I’ve tried. Sure your camera isn’t the slow one? I suspect this should be $200-250 and will retain it’s price. There’s such a captive market with 5100 owners, etc. I think the sales of 35/1.8 proved what pricing should be for these lightweight lenses. Just wish they made a 60/1.8 DX. Then I would buy it in a heartbeat.

hexx

well didn’t test on my (i’ve got d40, still) but tested on d80 and d7000 and it seemed that 50 af-d was a bit faster than 35 af-s

http://www.andradefoto.com fotosniper

the 35 1.8 is fast, but the 50 1.8 d is a very fast lens in Focus speed. My f6 will slap that lens into focus like a red headed step child.

castlev

VR is not needed at that focal length and aperture (not cost effective either).

The 1.4 autofocus is slower because it needs to be more precise because of the thin DOF.

Its a balance between speed and AF accuracy.

My guess is that the 1.8 AF-S is going to be faster than the 1.4.

CRojas

So, this throws away the rumor that Nikon wasn’t going to announce lenses this year. Cool!!!

I’ve always wondered if the 50mm ƒ/1.8G is considered a pro lens because it doesn’t have the gold ring.

http://dundermifflin.com dwight schrute

I’ve always wondered if the 50mm ƒ/1.8G is considered a pro lens because it doesn’t have the gold ring.

Jason

Nikon’s definition of a pro lens appeared at one time to be either a fixed aperture zoom or a prime that is either (1) unique at its focal length or (2) the most expensive option at its focal length. It meant that the 35mm/f2 was a pro lens and the 300mm/f4 wasn’t.
On the other hand, pro equipment is gear used by people who make >50% of their annual income through photography, if we go by a dictionary definition

http://www.andradefoto.com fotosniper

im a pro, and i use the 50 1.8 A LOT!

Grant N

The 35mm f2.0 is such an old lens Nikon did not make a distinction between pro and non-pro back then.

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Esbullbear

Perfect match for a low cost FF camera without a motor. Or am I dreaming?

This is supposed to be an f1.4G but since the earthquake in Japan they had a short supply of lenses and aperture blades so they reduced it from 9 to 7, the elements from 8 to 7 and the aperture opening from 1.4 to 1.8. Times are tough. =)